LAUSANNE (AFP) - The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has hired Russian doping whistle-blower Vitaly Stepanov as a consultant and is helping his runner wife Yuliya, a spokesman said on Monday.

The Stepanovs were instrumental in exposing doping in Russian sport that led to the country being banned from international athletics, while dozens of competitors were barred from the Rio Olympics this year.

They are now in hiding in the United States but an IOC spokesman confirmed a report by the insidethegames.com website that IOC president Thomas Bach had met them.

"The president met them some weeks ago and we are offering support to both," Mark Adams told AFP.

The couple had complained about the IOC's attitude after Stepanova was banned from competing at the Rio Games because of a past doping sanction.

Under the new deal, Stepanov, a former top official of the Russian Anti-Doping Agency, will be an anti-doping consultant. His wife, a middle-distance runner, has been given a training scholarship.

"We are very happy that we are now in a position to further fight doping and bring in our experiences in Russia and as whistle-blowers," Stepanov told insidethegames.com.

Russia, which has denied accusations by a World Anti-Doping Agency report of state-sanctioned doping, is struggling to get back into international athletics.